Doctor Braves Snowstorm, Walks 6 Miles to Perform Emergency Surgery

A surgeon in Alabama trekked more than
six miles on foot during Tuesday's snowstorm to perform life-saving brain surgery on a patient.

Dr. Zenko Hrynkiw was working at
Brookwood Medical Center in Birmingham on Tuesday when he received
word that a patient requiring emergency brain surgery had arrived at
Trinity Medical Center, located more than six miles away. But because of
Tuesday's storm, which effectively shut down transportation across the
Southeast, Hrynkiw was able to drive only three blocks before traffic stopped. He quickly called the hospital.

"The cell service was bad so we
were fading in and out," Steve Davis, charge nurse in the neuro
intensive care unit at Trinity, told AL.com. "At one point, I
heard him say, 'I'm walking.'"

Davis contacted hospital authorities, who
notified law enforcement. "The
police were looking for him," Davis said.

Several
hours went by before Hrynkiw's calls got through. "He finally
called me and said, 'Where's the patient? What's the status?'"
Davis said.

Not long after, Hrynkiw finally arrived at the hospital, met with the
patient's family, and performed the surgery. The patient, who
would've died without the procedure, is doing well and is expected to recover.

"This
just speaks volumes to the dedication of the [Dr.Hrynkiw],"
Davis said. "When I saw him, all I could say is 'you are a good
man.'"